"The Real March Madness" ! Every March, NCAA Division I Wrestlers gather for the biggest event of the year: The National Championship Tournament. It serves as the NEW BREEDING GROUND for many of MMA's Stars.

The NCAA Division I Tournament is the type of talent-meets-pressure venue that has led many of its participants to reach the Upper Echelon of MMA. 332 athletes vie for 80 podium spots. Division I wrestlers find success in MMA & its championship event is a strong litmus test of future MMA success.

"The stadium is totally packed. It's amazing to see guys like DAN GABLE & other wrestlers who are featured in magazines right there on the mat." says Matt Hughes, two-time All-American for Eastern Illinois.

"It's a GRIND, & only the Tough will make it through this Tournament," says Josh Koscheck, NCAA Champion & four-time All-American for Edinboro University. "You can have so many ups & downs with this Tournament. It is so difficult because you have the best wrestlers in the Nation gunning for the biggest & hardest prize in NCAA sports."

"It really is a science to be able to compete at the top level for the NCAA Tournament," says Gray Maynard, three-time All-American for Michigan State. "IT'S ALL ABOUT WORK ETHIC, MENTAL TOUGHNESS, FOCUS, & PREPARATION."

The Division I National Finals are televised on ESPN & have become the newest stage for many of MMA's rising stars!

"I'm used to competing in front of fans at the highest level of a sport," says Phil Davis, recent UFC signee & NCAA Champion in 2008 for Penn State. "I don't even hear the crowd anymore in MMA."

The list of those who have missed out on a championship but have distinguished themselves as All-Americans is much longer: Randy Couture, Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal, Matt Hughes, Aaron Simpson, Ryan Bader, Gray Maynard, & dozens more fighters in the UFC, WEC, & Strikeforce.

"Everybody gears up for this tourny. It's like the Super Bowl," says Rashad Evans, two-time qualifier for Michigan State. "It's all about how you compete that one day. The UFC is the same proving ground. The fighters you meet in the UFC fight like it's the Super Bowl." The tournament creates focused, jacked-up competitors. Grapplers learn to deal with the rampant brutality of their bodies.

"The NCAA Tournament helped me for MMA because it reminded me of a lot of different things," says Urijah Faber, two-time NCAA qualifier for UC Davis. "The difference between a guy who is considered the very best & the guy that isn't is very minute & it's motivating to know you can be so close & so celebrated & just a lot of times it comes down to having a great day & believing in yourself.

*While MMA is a different beast, the NCAA Wrestling Tournament prepares its graduates on a stage that few others have the chance to be on.

"I learned many valuable lessons competing for Okie State--how to train hard & win, but more importantly, how to put losing in proper perspeactive," says Randy Couture. "I lost in the NCAA finals two times. I believe that lesson made me a better athlete & certainly a better person as I transitioned to becoming an MMA athlete."

*NOTE: This article was EXCERPTED from the March issue of "Fight Magazine." It can be read in its entirety here but does not include the mag's seven wrestling photos: [link] *I just felt it was appropriate to share with all those out there in our Wrestling & MMA community.

"FROM MATS TO CAGES": The athletic prowess, work ethic, & mental toughness acquired through countless years on sweat-drenched wrestling mats have helped to shape some of the MMA's most promising athletes. Here are three who are poised for success.

*TYRON WOODLEY, Welterweight, Record: 5-0The 27-year-old Strikeforce welterweight was a two-time All-American at the University of Missouri. Since making the transition to MMA, Woodley has compiled an unblemished record, with all five of his victories coming via submission.

*PHIL DAVIS, Light Heavyweight, Record: 5-0Davis captured an NCAA Championship in 2008 before making the jump to MMA. Since that time, the 25-year-old has amassed a perfect record of 5-0 while training under the wings of Lloyd Irvin, Brandon Vera, & Team Black House.

*BEN ASKREN, Welterweight, Record: 3-0A two-time NCAA Wrestling Champion out of the University of Missouri, this 25-year-old welterweight prospect has put together an undefeated record of 3-0, with all of his victories coming in the first round.

"WORLD-CLASS SKILLS": A phrase that is overused by commentators & fans when describing excellent wrestlers is "WORLD-CLASS." In wrestling circles, World-Class means wrestlers who have earned the right to be on the NATIONAL Team & have participated in the World Championships or Olympics! World-Class is reserved for seven wrestlers in both Freestyle (FS) & Greco Roman (GR) wrestling each year. These spots are earned by winning the World Team Trials or Olympic Team Trials.

*[National Champions & All-Americans]:All-American (AA) is associated with a wrestler who finishes in the top eight of his respective Collegiate National Championships. There are D-1, D-2, D-3, NAIA, & JUCO National Championships. Achieving All-American status or even a National Championship (NC) does not garner the designation of "World-Class."

Former D-1 (AA) & UFC/MMA Fighter Chael Sonnen speaks on Wrestling. Chael says a big part of Wrestling that helps him in Fighting is his mentality & transitioning from wrestling to MMA involves both sports being combative. [link]

Two-time NCAA champion & 2008 Olympian Ben Askren is one of the most colorful personalities in wrestling, & he has taken the MMA world by storm, compiling a perfect 6-0 record in under two years. He defeated Ryan Thomas & Dan Hornbuckle to win Bellator's welterweight tournament, & is facing Lyman Good next month for the "Welterweight Championship." One-on-One with Ben Askren: [link]

2010 NCAA finalist Lance Palmer signs with MMA Incorporated. 4x NCAA All-American & 2010 NCAA Division I finalist for Ohio State has signed with MMA Inc. to manage his mixed martial arts career & will move to Sacramento, Calif., to begin his MMA training with Urijah Faber's Team Alpha Male. *Palmer is also one of the subjects of a new amateur wrestling documentary, "Pinned." [link]

To "psch": Sorry, I don't really know the exact details of Lance Palmer's MMA status vs. his latest commitment towards Virginia Tech. His conflicting article reports between signing on with MMA Incorporated & Team Alpha male (according to MMA Weekly.com) & his current announcement to VT is confusing. Perhaps he plans on doing both if it is allowed or feasible? Maybe he's taking a break from MMA while he is engaged during the Wrestling season? Blacksburg to Sacramento is surely a long stretch & I wonder how it's going to work too. I guess we'll have to wait & see what transpires.

Joe Warren (Bellator Fighting Championships). Where Fighters become Warriors & Warriors become Legends. Warren was a 3x World champion Greco-Roman wrestler. He has trained with the U.S. Olympic Team & taken home gold medals at the Pan-Am Games, the 2006 FILA Wrestling World Championships & the 2007 Wrestling World Cup. Before that, he was an All-American wrestler at the University of Michigan. Bellator profile/Bio: [link]

Bellator must have needed another rock star wrestler after snatching up superstars Ben Askren & Joe Warren, so they signed rising star Eric Larkin. Larkin, a 4x All-American, 4x Pac 10 champ & 3x National USA Wrestling Team Member, wrestled for ASU & also worked there as an assistant wrestling coach for 4 years. [link]

Larkin also won the prestigious Dan Hodge Trophy, awarded by WIN (Wrestling Insider Newsmagazine) to the year's best collegiate wrestler as well as the 2003 NCAA Outstanding Wrestler honors.

Mark Ellis: The Newest Member of the AKA Stable / MMA DIEHARDS. "The Wrestlers are Coming." = American Kickboxing Academy's Daniel Cormier loves to make that declaration, & now the AKA camp has laid claim to another Wrestling stud headed into the world of mixed martial arts. Numerous wrestlers have opted to make the move to MMA rather than pursue an Olympic medal. Mark Ellis, the 2009 NCAA Champion out of the University of Missouri, is the latest to make the move. The NCAA Champion tends to agree with Cormier when it comes to this being the time of the wrestler in MMA. "(Wrestlers) are doing really well," Ellis said. "I don't know if it's easier to pick up the other parts of the MMA game, but it just seems like the Wrestlers are DOMINATING the sport in a lot of different aspects." Ellis will work to improve his game in anticipation of his debut while also lending a hand to help teammate Cain Velasquez prepare for his upcoming UFC heavyweight title fight against Brock Lesnar. [link]

MMA Diehards has a profile of 2009 NCAA wrestling champ Mark Ellis who has joined AKA to train... [link]

Daniel Cormier: The former Olympic wrestler had a busy four weeks, winning three times in less than 30 days. Cormier claimed the XMMA Heavyweight Title with a TKO victory over Lucas Browne on July 31st. He won the King of the Cage Heavyweight Title by securing a rear naked choke on Tony Johnson on August 13th. Eight days later, Cormier submitted Jason Riley via strikes at Strikeforce: Houston. Cormier (5-0) has finished his last four opponents in the first round.

This thread is filled with great stuff. People around the world have realized that wrestling is by far the greatest base to build other fighting skills around. This statement doesn't even include the intangilbles that wrestling provides a mixed martial artist or fighter.